Mentoring Guidelines

These guidelines are intended to help new members of staff, mentors and prospective mentors, Heads of Department, Heads of House and Heads of professional support service departments by answering the following questions:

What is mentoring?

Why have a mentor?

What are the benefits of mentoring?

What mentoring approaches are adopted at Durham University?

Who should be a mentor?

What can mentees expect?

What can mentors expect?

What support is available to mentors?

They are based on comments gained from staff who participated in the review of the Durham University HR mentoring process 2009. The guidance notes combine best practice from outside the university with a special regard for the particular circumstances of work within it.

In compiling these guidelines, HR gratefully acknowledges the assistance of staff who have contributed comments on mentoring and to acknowledge the advice of colleagues in the universities of Leeds, Cambridge and Newcastle.